Sumit SinghalSumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination.

Private house in Abidjan, Ivory coast by Alexander Yonchev Architecture

The project is situated in a residential district in the suburban area of the city of Abidjan. It is developed on a flat and rectangular site plot enclosed by a continuous brick wall. The surrounding context consists in private houses close to each other.

This fact is very disturbing for the clients who are looking for a calm and private atmosphere in a simple and contemporary architecture. Therefore, the project is designed on only one level trying to offer the researched by the clients qualities, using of a maximum closings from the exterior and a maximum openings on the interior.

The hierarchy of the living spaces is conceived on different layers alternating interiors and exteriors. Each space is orientated to an exterior space that corresponds to its level of privacy. The house is positioned in a way that divides the site plot in two courtyards with almost opposite characteristics: a mineral space with a swimming pool and a backyard garden. The structure of the house is made in concrete columns positioned on a regular grid and holding the large flat roof that is the main sun protection. The volume is closed by large sliding glass doors, giving the possibility to open it completely to the exterior spaces. On the inside, there are four wooden blocks containing the bedrooms, bathrooms and technical spaces.

These blocks define the shapes of the living spaces (entrance hall, living room, kitchen and studio) and the transition passages between them. The bedrooms are orientated to an interior patio, which is completely invisible to guests and offers a great privacy to the house owners. The strength of the project results from the carefully studied hierarchy of all interior and exterior spaces, regrouped in an extremely simple shape.